4 Goodgymmers raced the arrival of the rain as they gave trees around Wood Green a lovely autumnal manicure

A hard rain's gonna fall

Our ninja squad defied the weather warnings and impeding downpours to lend a hand to the Friends of Green Spaces in Noel Park. The suckers on the trees along the Lymmington Avenue in the estate are renowned for their vigorous growing and every Autumn we have been tasked with maintaining them and keeping them in check.

Not even the threat of hard rain could stop us and the four of us managed to get through about half of the road before the first bit of rain and thunder arrived.

We'll be back in a couple of weeks to finish the job.

Five runners ran 1.5 km to help hydrate the orchard at Chapman's Green.

We avoided the main road, and took some side streets, that despite having run round there plenty of times before, got Dave a little turned around. Still we made it in plenty of time!

Last time we shocked the park volunteers by how much we were able to do in. But this week, with our illustrious leader laid low, and a couple of members off chasing the moon round Battersea Park, there were less of us. Spoilers, we still managed to get a shocking amount done! Beth and Ellie made it for the third week in a row, so Dave unilaterally declared them to be regulars now The trees there have had a rough summer, and despite the recent grey weather, there's not been much rain. So the little water they get, gets guzzled up by the grass. Our ongoing mission, is to dig up the turf around the base of these trees, to allow the water to soak down to their roots. This turns out to be quite the arm work out, and by 7:50 we were starting to flag, and moved on to an apple tree at the back of the meadow. But tough times can be good for fruit and volunteers. The apples were super concentrated and sweet, and we powered through the turf in record time!

There was chat about upcoming races, but no-one can beat Chis Hadfield's 28,800 kilometers per hour (aboard the ISS).

Good luck at your Half Neil!

See you next week

10 Goodgymmers crashed into the gates at Russell Park for an evening of painting and bonhomie. Highlights of the evening included Gramps absolutely stacking it on the run to task and injuring himself in a few places, and our Sarah's unwitting invitation for a spot of heavy caressing. You had to be there!

Normal service will resume this week at Chapmans Green - come!

On this slightly chilly September evening Mark was the first to arrive at Blue House Yard, welcoming newcomer James. They were soon joined by Paul, Veronika, and eventually Sarah. It was a short and social run from there to Wolves Lane, where Ed had already taken credit for being the first to arrive.

Wolves Lane is a particular favourite for Goodgym Haringey, as it was the scene of our very first group run. A lot has changed at the site since then, and recently three new buildings have gone up. We were greeted by task owner Alistair, who has worked there for 18 years so had even more stories to tell. We were soon set to work shifting mulch to a spot outside, and watering plants in the Black Rootz polytunnel and the cactus house.

Today's team was so efficient the task was completed in record time, so we had time to flick through Alistair's photo album of the site before ducking into the Palm House to visit the carp and terrapins.

Apologies for belated report but our AA managed to land himself in hospital for a few days pretty much straight after this task. He's on the mend now and hopefully back with us next week. But rest assured our Goodgymmers were absolute heroes last week, lending a hand to the Friends of Finsbury Gardens following a lovely community event the weekend prior. We litter picked to our heart's content. Also, normal service will continue as Sarah takes to crew to Wolves Lane to lead them on a good howling session - join them!